“I guess I can see why somebody could say same old Lions, but we’re not,” Detroit Lions receiver Nate Burleson said today. “I’ll just leave it at that.”

The Lions (1-1) visit Washington (0-2) this week coming off a tough-to-stomach loss to the Arizona Cardinals when they committed eight penalties for 101 yards and fell victim to some familiar self-inflicted mistakes.

They fumbled once inside their own 10-yard line, had a third-quarter takeaway nullified by penalty and sealed their fate with a pass-interference call on the goal line to set up Arizona’s game-winning touchdown.

Dungy, a Jackson native, said Sunday on “Football Night in America” that he saw too many games play out in similar fashion while growing up a Lions fan.

“S.O.L.,” Dungy said. “Same Old Lions.”

Lions coach Jim Schwartz took exception to Dungy’s comments at his press conference Monday, and players weighed in on the topic after their walk-through today.

“Tony Dungy’s a great coach, been a great coach in this league for a long time,” quarterback Matthew Stafford said. “Well-respected member of the NFL, but his job now is to talk about it and we understand that. And we’re doing everything we can to play as clean a football as we possibly clean and make as little mistakes as we can and I don’t really have too much time to be paying attention to what everybody says. If I did that, I wouldn’t be getting ready every week.”

Burleson said the Lions are “a much different team” than they’ve been in years past even though they’re tied for fourth in the league with 19 accepted penalties through two weeks.

“I didn’t hear him say that, but I don’t appreciate those words. I’m very sensitive about my team,” Burleson said. “I wonder what he said after Week 1. Did he say the same thing after we started the season off on a good note against a good team with a good running back and get a victory?

“It’s the NFL. I don’t want people to get too caught up in immediate results. Yes, this is the regular season, we’re 1-1, but you can’t say the same old lions when we lose a tough game against a tough team on the road. We have another chance, hopefully we can turn Tony Dungy into a fan. I’m a fan of his.”

Beat writer Dave Birkett will answer your Lions questions in a live chat at 10 a.m. Friday at freep.com/sports. Submit early questions here. Then join sports writer Carlos Monarrez for a live blog of the Lions-Redskins game Sunday. Enter here to win tickets to the Thanksgiving game. And play NFL Pick 'Em each week to win valuable cash and prizes.

So far, I agree w/Dungy...Same. Old. Lions. In fact, it was pretty much my thoughts on the game Sunday. Sure, they started out good; moving the ball well, but the whole time I couldn't shake the thought that they would find a way to lose the game...and sure enough, they did. For all the talk....

Quote:

“I guess I can see why somebody could say same old Lions, but we’re not,” Detroit Lions receiver Nate Burleson said today. “I’ll just leave it at that.”

Quote:

“Tony Dungy’s a great coach, been a great coach in this league for a long time,” quarterback Matthew Stafford said. “Well-respected member of the NFL, but his job now is to talk about it and we understand that. And we’re doing everything we can to play as clean a football as we possibly clean and make as little mistakes as we can and I don’t really have too much time to be paying attention to what everybody says. If I did that, I wouldn’t be getting ready every week.”

Quote:

“I didn’t hear him say that, but I don’t appreciate those words. I’m very sensitive about my team,” Burleson said. “I wonder what he said after Week 1. Did he say the same thing after we started the season off on a good note against a good team with a good running back and get a victory?

“It’s the NFL. I don’t want people to get too caught up in immediate results. Yes, this is the regular season, we’re 1-1, but you can’t say the same old lions when we lose a tough game against a tough team on the road. We have another chance, hopefully we can turn Tony Dungy into a fan. I’m a fan of his.”

...its damn time they start showing they're not the Same. Old. Lions.

Talk is cheap Staff, Nate, et al. PROVE IT!

_________________

Quote:

Clowns to the left of me, Jokers to the right....

September 18th, 2013, 9:25 am

m2karateman

RIP Killer

Joined: October 20th, 2004, 4:16 pmPosts: 10408Location: Where ever I'm at now

Re: Same Old Lions?

TheRealWags wrote:

So far, I agree w/Dungy...Same. Old. Lions. In fact, it was pretty much my thoughts on the game Sunday. Sure, they started out good; moving the ball well, but the whole time I couldn't shake the thought that they would find a way to lose the game...and sure enough, they did. For all the talk....

Quote:

“I guess I can see why somebody could say same old Lions, but we’re not,” Detroit Lions receiver Nate Burleson said today. “I’ll just leave it at that.”

Quote:

“Tony Dungy’s a great coach, been a great coach in this league for a long time,” quarterback Matthew Stafford said. “Well-respected member of the NFL, but his job now is to talk about it and we understand that. And we’re doing everything we can to play as clean a football as we possibly clean and make as little mistakes as we can and I don’t really have too much time to be paying attention to what everybody says. If I did that, I wouldn’t be getting ready every week.”

Quote:

“I didn’t hear him say that, but I don’t appreciate those words. I’m very sensitive about my team,” Burleson said. “I wonder what he said after Week 1. Did he say the same thing after we started the season off on a good note against a good team with a good running back and get a victory?

“It’s the NFL. I don’t want people to get too caught up in immediate results. Yes, this is the regular season, we’re 1-1, but you can’t say the same old lions when we lose a tough game against a tough team on the road. We have another chance, hopefully we can turn Tony Dungy into a fan. I’m a fan of his.”

...its damn time they start showing they're not the Same. Old. Lions.

Talk is cheap Staff, Nate, et al. PROVE IT!

100% completely agree. We continue to hear the rhetoric out of this locker room about 'cleaning it up', and 'we don't teach that', and whatever other PR stuff they can come up with. But in the end, it's all about your field performance and winning. Dropping passes, penalties at critical times, and missing tackles is something this team does too much of, and has done so over the years. Same Old Lions.

_________________I will not put on blinders when it comes to our QBs performances.

September 18th, 2013, 11:57 am

regularjoe12

Off. Coordinator – Jim Bob Cooter

Joined: March 30th, 2006, 12:48 amPosts: 4195Location: Davison Mi

Re: Same Old Lions?

def same old lions so far this season. the Minny game was more of a nail biter than it should have been. They gave away AT LEAST 10 points just due to one form of stupidity or another, and the same ole shennanniganns costed them the AZ game.

_________________"Good teams don't worry about a whole lot of stuff. They travel, they play, they win. And it doesn't matter where they go, what the time block is, all those kinds of things. They never seem to bother teams that play well, and we want to be one of those teams." -Jim Caldwell

September 18th, 2013, 12:40 pm

Pablo

RIP Killer

Joined: August 6th, 2004, 9:21 amPosts: 9985Location: Dallas

Re: Same Old Lions?

As a Lions fan for a long time, to me these are not the same old Lions. Why, first of all we have a QB - this is a big change (guess y'all forgot about Kitna, and Orlovsky, and Harrington, and Peete, and fill in the blank with Lions spare QB of choice). Second, we have talent on both sides of the ball - too long we have been devoid of any talent outside of placekicker. The Lions never had a reputation for being tough or dirty or... they were seen as bubbles the Lion, a pansy, a pushover. Free agents actually come to Detroit now, at a reasonable cost - this is a far cry from where the franchise once stood.

That said, I'm seeing the same issues from the last few years - essentially since Schwartz took over - continue to raise their ugly heads. Teams know we are undisciplined and will try to take advantage of that (like Palmer throwing up that pass hoping to get a PI call).

The Lions usually ranked #32 in defense and not much better on offense. They moved past that, but still have a long ways to go.

It sure feels like SOL sometimes, especially a kick in the gut game like AZ, but I'll take the current issues over those of the past in a heartbeat....

I sure hope all these comments came out of reporters questions referencing Dungys comments, because if they didnt, then its obvious we are reading the comments, and taking them to heart, and are more worried about our image than we are about not playing like morons and losing games we should win.

The SOL would have found a way to lose today. By winning today, you shove that SOL statement up your rectum because the SOL are dead, buried, and history. The SOL simply have never won in Washington DC. This team has. So stick it!

September 22nd, 2013, 11:20 pm

Wackadoo

Junior Varsity

Joined: March 26th, 2006, 11:09 amPosts: 174

Re: Same Old Lions?

BillySims wrote:

Hey Dungy:

The SOL would have found a way to lose today. By winning today, you shove that SOL statement up your rectum because the SOL are dead, buried, and history. The SOL simply have never won in Washington DC. This team has. So stick it!

The SOL would have found a way to lose today. By winning today, you shove that SOL statement up your rectum because the SOL are dead, buried, and history. The SOL simply have never won in Washington DC. This team has. So stick it!

Tony Dungy was born in Jackson, MI and has said he was a Lions fan growing up. He has every right to say SOL any damn time he wants. Just like many people will say it when they do something to lose a game they should win again this season.

September 23rd, 2013, 12:39 am

m2karateman

RIP Killer

Joined: October 20th, 2004, 4:16 pmPosts: 10408Location: Where ever I'm at now

Re: Same Old Lions?

BillySims wrote:

Hey Dungy:

The SOL would have found a way to lose today. By winning today, you shove that SOL statement up your rectum because the SOL are dead, buried, and history. The SOL simply have never won in Washington DC. This team has. So stick it!

Sorry, Billy. But if you are that impressed by the Lions win yesterday, then I feel immensely sorry for you. It wasn't a case of the Lions going out there and beating a superior team. It looked more like a case of who wanted to lose more, and the Redskins were determined to hang that L on themselves, despite the Lions best efforts to go 0-22 in Washington.

Even the SOL won some games in the past despite their uninspiring play. I thought the game yesterday was entirely uninspiring.

_________________I will not put on blinders when it comes to our QBs performances.

September 23rd, 2013, 8:35 am

Hystrix

National Champion

Joined: August 13th, 2006, 11:04 pmPosts: 900Location: Colorado

Re: Same Old Lions?

m2karateman wrote:

BillySims wrote:

Hey Dungy:

The SOL would have found a way to lose today. By winning today, you shove that SOL statement up your rectum because the SOL are dead, buried, and history. The SOL simply have never won in Washington DC. This team has. So stick it!

Sorry, Billy. But if you are that impressed by the Lions win yesterday, then I feel immensely sorry for you. It wasn't a case of the Lions going out there and beating a superior team. It looked more like a case of who wanted to lose more, and the Redskins were determined to hang that L on themselves, despite the Lions best efforts to go 0-22 in Washington.

Even the SOL won some games in the past despite their uninspiring play. I thought the game yesterday was entirely uninspiring.

2. Even with no Reggie Bush, our undrafted backup running back had 130+ all purpose yards and a TD. So much for us being dead in the water w/o Bush.

3. Another undrafted player, Fauria, grabs his second TD of the season.

4. Megatron had another great game. His TD catch was clutch.

5. How about Nate Burlson showing up. 100+ yard day for Nate.

6. Broyles had a couple nice grabs as well.

7. O-line looked good.

8. Defense held together when they needed to. They weren't great, but they only gave up 14 points (6 of Washington's points came off of the pick 6).

9. Suh didn't get penalized or fined.

10. Ziggy had 2 sacks and a forced fumble.

11. Tons of QB pressure. If we had played against any other QB that way, we would have had 8+ sacks.

12. We beat a team (I don't care who they are) on the road. Looking back over the Lions sad road record, I'll take it.

13. We beat a team on the road in place we have NEVER won at, until yesterday.

14. We won. That should be enough. Dang it! Can't we just be happy about a win?

I don't know what you want, M2K. Really man, it wasn't perfect, but I count A LOT of positives and that's more than we can usually say. Point is, don't squash Billy's enthusiasm. I feel the same way about the media, and I don't care who they are.

September 23rd, 2013, 9:17 am

Pablo

RIP Killer

Joined: August 6th, 2004, 9:21 amPosts: 9985Location: Dallas

Re: Same Old Lions?

The SOL never went for 4th and 1 in the 4th qtr up by 3 and made it en route to a TD to put themselves up 10. Who were those guys?

The SOL would have found a way to lose today. By winning today, you shove that SOL statement up your rectum because the SOL are dead, buried, and history. The SOL simply have never won in Washington DC. This team has. So stick it!

Pablo wrote:

The SOL never went for 4th and 1 in the 4th qtr up by 3 and made it en route to a TD to put themselves up 10. Who were those guys?

Agreed. Way to pull it out, Lions.

Keep it up, because you're playing for 1st place in the Division this weekend.